Manifest Destiny
by Anastazia Silverwind
Summary: Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round heads in the square holes. The one's who see things differently. They're not fond of rules. You can quote them. Disagre with them. Glorify or vilify them. But the one thing...
1. The Grand Scheme Of Things

Disclaimer: The actual writing is mine, but the character Liam, and anything else you realize as being Tamora Peirce's is hers. So don't sue! Cause I don't got any money anyway…Also, I'm only writing this disclaimer, so now you've seen it so there!

**Chapter** **One: Darkness Shown**

Here's to the crazy ones. The misfits. The rebels. The troublemakers. The round heads in the square holes. The one's who see things differently. They're not fond of rules. You can quote them. Disagree with the. Glorify or vilify them. But the only thing you can't do is ignore them. Because they change things. They push the human race forward. And while some may see them as the crazy one's, we see genius. Because the people who are crazy enough to think that they can change the world, are the one's who do.

In the past years the country had suffered many grievances. The reigning nobility and its surrounding nobles had all been killed. The savages had taken over the country and its new rulers had shaky power over the inhabitants. The used fear as their primary source of control. The inhabitants had yet to realize that they outnumbered the army and the nobility by far. But the few who spoke out against the regime where brutally killed and the villages they lived in slaughtered. The ruling king was merely a pawn, being directed by one too cowardly to say his name and he rarely appeared in public, rather he preferred to send his king out for him. 

The king was a stupid man; he liked to sit in his gardens, with his wine, food and women. Most of the women of the old nobility where his pets. Preferring the safety of pleasuring a fat man to the daily fear and threat of death outside the castle walls. The very few who did choose that fate where young when the war happened and held onto those memories, determined to somehow bring the old nobility back. People said they where crazy, they just wanted life, as they knew it back.

::-::

He watched sullenly was the king paraded past, his women surrounding him. Women he had once known and respected. Women he had once thought the greatest in the realm. Now they where slaves to the 'Empire'. _What's so great about this empire? What good has it done us? I can only see bad results. But I'm probably biased. He thought, running hands through his now brown hair. He stopped to look in a shop window. __Boy have I changed. He thought bitterly. __Brown hair, brown eye's, brown, dirty skin. Far from the traits I used to have. He thought, allowing his mind to wander back, when he had always been clean, his hair had been gleaming midnight black, his eyes had been the color of prized sapphires he had never been dirty. His nanny had yelled fiercely if even the tip of his shoes got dusty. _

The only thing left he had was the medallion of nobility that he had to keep hidden at all times. The circular pendant with the star carved in great detail in its center lay beneath his layers of clothing, heavy in the center of his chest. It was the only way the old nobility had of recognizing each other. The few that still lived free never trusted anyone unless they had the medallion, they couldn't all had to drastically change their appearances lest the kind or his adviser recognized them. 

He shook his head and slipped into a bar, _The Dancing Dove. Once a hide out for the realms thieves it was now a hide out for the nobility, also where he worked._

"Lo' there Johnny, here te' take o'er fer me?" Asked Lexus, the innkeeper, he worked the nightshift very rarely, he worked very rarely, only when there was no one else. Most of the time he sat in his room and wrote his book.

"Yeh." He said, sliding behind the counter. "Been busy?"

"Not too bad. Hired a new girl, make sure the' boys go easy on er." He said before disappearing into the kitchen and back to his cave, also known as the cellar. 

Johnny shook his head and rested his head in his hands.

"Sir, sir, _sir_!" Came a slightly controlled shriek from the back of the room. He looked up in time to see a man grab a girl and throw her over his shoulder. The pitcher she had been holding clattered to the floor, broken into pieces, the ale wasted on the dirty floor. "Sir, I _demand _you release me this instant." She growled, twisting in his grasp.

"Or wha'?" The man said, laughing heartily. 

"Or _this_." The girl finally growled, twisting her arm to grasp his neck. Gritting her teeth she strengthened her grip. The man growled and dropped her ungracefully on the ground. She hit the floor with her fore arms and rolled away unharmed.

"Why you li'le-" The man gasped rubbing his neck. Eyes flashing in anger he approached her.

"Sir, I'm going to have to ask you to leave. All of you need to go. We have to clean up. Third anniversary of the empire today, place must be in ship shape." Johnny rambled, grabbing the man's bicep and pulling him towards the door. "You're all welcome back tonight though." He said, waving them all through the door. When the last had reluctantly left. He slammed the door and bolted it. 

He turned and looked the girl over. She wasn't so much a girl as a young woman, about his age he suspected. She had brown hair a little below her shoulders, brown eyes that at first appeared large and innocent but then you realized they weren't so much innocent as decidedly mischievous. As he looked her over he gasped and raced towards her, taking the pendant that was now hanging obviously from her neck, the gold shining, outclassing the dirty blue of her dress. He grasped it in his hand. The chain was long enough it should have stayed in her bodice had she not been upside down. He flipped it over to examine the family crest. 

"Draconia eh? I'd out that away Princess, there are folk about not friendly to the old nobility." He said, walking into the kitchen for rags and buckets of water. _Draconia, I thought they where all killed? What is she doing here? Draconia is month's travel from here, that's an island of the inland sea, even the Bazirh don't bother to climb the Southern wall to go there. Few ever make it that far south._ He was late in realizing his own pendant had slid off his neck. 

Whirling around he saw her studying it carefully. His own pendant had been magically altered so it looked like a plain circle of brass, but with the proper word of power-

"Thistærté." She whispered. The medallion flashed once and his family crest was revealed. She gasped and looked up at him once, brown eyes flashing. She dropped to her knees, her forehead touching the ground.

"Highness, I'm sorry, I didn't recognize you." She said quietly into the ground, but he heard her words clearly.

"Get up." He said, his voice colder than he had meant. "I'm no longer in that place of honor."

"Neither am I, highness and yet you called me Princess." She said, voice just as cold.

"A Draconian Princess is _always_ a princess. Dragons do not care about the rulers of a country." He said.

"Just as a Conté prince is always a prince the gods do not-" She began angrily, standing walking up to him, his medallion dangling from her hand.

"Are you insane woman, even the walls have ears these days. _Especially in Corus." He said, pulling the only remaining proof of his identity from her hand._

"Ah, but it's no longer Corus is it? No it's _Haimèt_ correct?" She said whispering fiercely.

Angered the Conté prince stepped closer bringing their noses scant inches apart from each other. 

"I swear Woman if you do not shut that infernal mouth of yours shut I'll-"

A shrill shriek coursed through the air and the girl dropped to her knees once more, hands pressed on her ears. "No, no _no! _I'm fine, quiet, if you don't be quiet right now I'll. Silence! _Rasparet! Hallus Ickor Nesfareate!" She said, crying words of silence. _

He young prince watched in awed silence as these arcane words dropped like common from her tongue. The eerie wail stopped and a stunned silence reigned over the city before a noise fiercer than before commenced and chaos reigned outside.

"What was that?" He asked, his fury having dissipated.

 "Is there a dragon here?" She asked, surprise evident on her now deathly pale face.

"Yes, Skysong, she was staying with the wildmage before..."

"Ah, that changes things."

"What things? What do you know?" He asked.

"Shh, not here. Not where people may hear." She said. "Come, we have to clean this up." She said, gesturing to the common room that was a mess of ale, breadcrumbs, empty plates and the occasional pile of regurgitation. 

Johnny grabbed her arm. "We will talk later though, I promise you that." He said, his face inches from hers.

"That was never in question, _Liam._"

Ehehehe! There, chapter one up! And I'm 99% positive I'm going to keep this one up soo…Review! If you're going to flame me please at least tell me why it's bad, otherwise I will more than likely ignore them. Review!

~~Ana~~

Thistærté: Reaveal your true nature

Haimèt: Corus

Rasparet! Hallus Ickor Nesfareate! Silence, I demand Peace.


	2. Rhianden

Alcapacien: Ok, more info on take over. I'll work on it. Thx! 

**Fantasy Is My Life 1: **_No stopping mid-way, got it. Yessir!_

**Bella: **_::bows:: good, I'm glad tis good!_

**Evilstrawberry: **_All will be explained young grasshopper. ^_^_

**Engulfingdawn: **_hope I spelled that rite…I'm positive I'm continuing it, updates will just bee every week or two weeks is all. You'll all just have to be patient with me. ^-^ And thanks for the tip, talk about embarrassing…_

**Serpent of Light: **_hmm, you read other things I wrote? Then why do I no remember any reviews eh? Lol, hehe, I live off my reviews ehehe, now remember, read and REVIEW! Hehehe… _

**QueenofConnaught: **_I've been to Connaught. It's really pretty. Do u live there? Sorry, I read Connaught and went ahh! I remember that! Hehe, I'm a little Ireland obsessed…I got halfway thru one of your ficcies…Hope I didn't sound too cruel, I just gave me opinion.._

**Kiwi:**_ hehee, I like dragons…_

**Raven: Queen Of The Rouge: **_Hope you've never seen one like this before, Cause then that'd mean It was Unoriginal, and then I've have to start the whole idea process over again. Which would be a pain. ;)_

**FlamingKnight: **_Nope, not john. Liam using John's name because he needs a fake one. Everyone else may or may not be dead. We'll have to see how things progress won't we? Read story for more info on Draconia. And reviews with questions are good because then I know what to elaborate on!_

**Aubrey's Black Rose: **_Yup, Liam is John's son. And the rest will be explained._

Chapter Two: Rhialden 

Alanna screamed as the silver blade sliced through her body, the anciesnt song of death spewed from her lips. Life dripped from her body in dark red drops, staining the rocks she stood on, this couldn't be happening. Tortall could not be overrun! This was Tortall! Her Tortall! The savages could not just walk in, kill every one and rule. They weren't trained; there weren't enough of them, how?

She had watched as eight men surrounded John, begging him to rethink his decision to kill an assassin. She had thought it a very stupid thing to do. The man had killed twelve people he deserved to die. A messenger had come, telling her there was a man outside the door demanding he talk with her immediately. She had then left the conference room just as a commotion had erupted behind her. 

The men were stabbing John. She had tried to go to him but was cut off by another man.

Her last thoughts were of disgust with herself. How could she have missed this? How could any of them have missed a conspiracy as big as this one?

::-::

He was scared. Draconian's where scary, eerie people. They could figure things out just by looking at a problem, they saw the problem from all angles and then studied the results the actions would have on people. He studied her as she moved about he inn, serving drinks and food. Her actions where graceful and calculated carefully, she had almost perfect balance. She was a little thing, fairly short, though not as short as the once famed Lioness.

Draconia was an island where the Dragonlands and the mortal realm met. The breach had always been there and somehow the people group had befriended the dragons, even though the two had hated each other elsewhere in the world. It was said the Draconians had dragon blood in them. The people had managed to keep the secret from the rest of the world, and in turn the dragons defended the island. No one ever attacked Draconia, and if some one did, they didn't live to tell the tale. 

_A Draconian princess,_ he thought as he watched with mixed curiosity as she disappeared into the kitchen. A few minutes later he went in after her, and entered in time to see her stand on a wobbly chair to grab a pan. 

"You're going to-" He started to say and smiled a little as she shrieked and fell to the ground not so gracefully. "-Fall." He smirked as he walked over to her. She was standing up, shaking her skirts to get rid of the dust. 

She brushed herself off. She looked at him pointedly. 

"Could you reach me that pot?" She asked gesturing to the pot she had valiantly tried to reach. He smiled and reached to pick it up, one handed he grabbed it one handed and brought it down with no trouble. 

"Thank you." She said curtly, grabbing the pot. She filled it with soapy water before leaving. He smiled this girl had spunk. 

She sighed as she scrubbed yet another table. They're where only a few men left and she was trying to clean around them. Liam was scrubbing the floor on the other side of the room. She was tired and her back was sore. 

Suddenly the wind picked up and the door swung open. Getting up she groaned and moved to the door. A man came through the door, dripping wet though there was no rain. 

"Venus, here." The man gasped handing her an oiled tube before he disappeared all together. She blinked, more than surprised by the mans sudden appearance and disappearance.

She looked at Liam quizzically and he walked to join her at the bar.

"Open it." He prodded. She sighed.

"I don't know if I can, my name's not Venus." She murmured looking the tube over. It looked as if some one had tried to burn it; dark brown scorch marks scarred the leather. 

"Then who's Venus?" 

"She _was _my mother."

"But then why can't you open it?" He asked confused. 

"There's a spell on it, I can't open it without whatever' is inside self destructing. But what I don' get is how he knew me..." She murmured.

"But you said he called you by your mothers name."

"He did, and normally I look exactly like my mother did, but I don't know."

"What?"

"Glamour spells. Like you're using, this isn't what I normally look like." She quieted as the last drunk stumbled out of the inn.

"How did you know..." Eh asked.

"I'm a mage, a pretty good one at that, I can see that you've got the spells on, just not through them."

"Whoa, I didn't even notice that you had-"

"Most people don't, I'm very good at what I do." She said before grabbing her soapy water and heading to the vacated table. 

Liam rolled his eyes; this girl was difficult, interesting but difficult.

The room was clean and the two where out side, locking up and she was still fiddling with the leather tube. He watcher her carefully, she looked nervous. Draconians never looked nervous. They where above human emotions, inner struggles, they thought logically. _Stoicism _his brain whispered to him, that was what they practiced, stoicism. _A rather unfair thing to do to yourself_, he thought, _deny yourself every emotion. Sure I'd like to be rid of sadness and depression, but happiness and joy too? I suppose it has it's benefits, I certainly couldn't do it._

"We need to talk." He said after a moment. "I want to know what's going on." He said. She merely nodded.

"This way then." She said, stepping down an alleyway. He followed close behind. He followed her through dark alleys, past the city's outer limits and deep into the forest. HE was wet; the sky had opened up and was amused with dumping buckets of water down onto the earth, mainly on his person. 

 "Where are we?" He asked, disgruntled. She smiled a knowing smile.

"We're almost there, don't get your panty's in a bunch." She said, liking the show of outrage on his face. She loved making men uncomfortable. 

Unfortunately, this boy was smarter than the rest of his kin, and knew what she was doing. "Bet mine are prettier than yours."

"Really? Well than you might just have to show them to me sometime." This time he blushed, but he was not one to end a fight so quickly.

"Why would I do that?" 

"So that I know what I'm competing with." She said, smirking. He gasped as she disappeared into a tree. He waited a few seconds before testing the seeming tree. He was surprised as his hand passed through. He quickly withdrew his hand. 

"What?"

"Are you coming, it won't kill you, it's just an illusion." She said as she popped back out. He merely shrugged, not showing his fear and walked into the tree. She was trying to create a fire using flint and he watched in mild confusion.

"Why don't you use magic?"

"I've used more than enough tonight, if any hedge witch tried to find her cat she would see the magic trail I've left behind. And it would mean death for both of us if we were to be found." She said quietly. He watched as she looked to the ceiling, a small hole, only a hands breath in width was directly above her. "For ventilation." She murmured as he followed her gaze. "So, what do you want to know?" She asked, rifling trough her shelves. 

"First of all, where you came from, why you are here, what you know that I don't know, what your name is, how you knew who I was, where you learned to fight, mainly flipping large men over your shoulders and what it is you expect me to do. That's all." He said, all in one breath and she smiled a little as he took in one very large breath. 

"Alright, I come from the Isle Draconia, which is on the southern most tip of Tortall, on the Great Inland Sea. I'm here to help you through the task you have been assigned by the gods. I know a great deal of things that you don't know, some of which I will share with you, some of which I will not. I have many names, for all purposes in which we are not alone that name shall be Ria, when we are alone you may call me Saturn. I knew who you where because to an eye trained to look for you there where more than a few hints, otherwise it could be found out through your pendant. My brother taught me to fight. And I expect you to complete the task set before you. That was it wasn't it?" She said and he rolled his eyes at her superior tone of voice. 

"And just what, Miamian," He asked, naming the goddess of knowledge. "Is this task set about me by the gods?" She smiled.

"I think you know." Moonlight spilled into the cavern, bathing everything around it in a soft glow.

"I know? I don't know, I haven't a clue! How am I supposed to know?" He asked, glaring at her. "You're the messenger from the god's shouldn't you know?" 

"No! I might know, but usually the chosen figure these things out for themselves, and they never interrogate the messengers! Think the Lioness, the Wildmage, the Protector of the Small, Griffin, the Dragon, Alexander the Conqueror, Charlemagne, anybody! They all figures it out for themselves!"

"Yes, they also all died! Think about that for a minute." She glared at him and silence reigned. 

"Yes but they all died nobly." She whispered. 

"They still died. How they died is of no consequence. Now either you tell me what it is I'm supposed to do, or I won't do it at all."

"Ohhh!" She screamed. "Why do you have to be so difficult? Are you having _fun _is that it? Why can't you just do what you're told and be done with it? Must you question everything?" She yelled, while getting up and pacing.

"I might do it if I know what I was supposed to do!" He yelled back. "I haven't questioned anything! All I want to know is what I'm supposed to do!" Soon they where both yelling at the tops of their lungs and showed no signs of ceasing. 

A light blazed into the cave and the winds roared. A sound could be heard above the wind, a song that claimed the attention of any and all that heard it. If anyone had been listening they would have seen what looked like a falling star come crashing down to earth, if they had been looking. 

_STOP! _A voice shattered their fight; they clasped their hands over their ears as a sound like an avalanche invaded their heads. Liam's eyes watered, and Ria thought he was crying from the pain.

_This is no way to act! Shame! What have you got to say for yourselves?_

The two humans looked up to see a very tall woman who radiated a dull red/orange light. Like the color of amber. She was beautiful, there were no two ways about it, she was gorgeous, but dangerous. 

"Um," Liam began.

_Um? Typical human response. And you? _Ria guessed that question was aimed at her.

"We where just fighting, Madame. Who are you?" She asked timidly. And then it laughed, a sound of a lightning storm, crashing through their heads, Ria swore that he head was going to explode before it stopped.

_Fighting? What for? It solves nothing. You, young men are to put your country back to rights, you will rule. And for your stupid behavior Saturn, You will help him. _

"What? _No!_" She yelled and then it laughed again. "Who are you to tell _me _what to do?"

_I am the god Rhialden, and I am in charge of your life for the next few years._ It said before shooting back into the sky.

"Disgusting, gods! Thinking they can just come in here and screw with _my _life! Ug!" Ria yelled. "_I'm NOT DOING IT!" _She yelled into the sky. 

"Right, now, how do I fix Tortall?" He asked puzzled.

"What? I don't know! I'm _not _helping!"

"Why not? Got something better to do?" He asked, she glared at him.

"Yes." He gave her a look that said, _really? _"Maybe." He continued to give her that look. "No. But I'm not helping."

"And why not?"

"Because." She said, sounding like a churlish child.

"Because…"

"Because I will _not _be bossed around by some uppity god who thinks that she can come down here and screw with me. Because _SHE CAN'T!" _She ended that sentence yelled at the sky. He rolled his eyes.

"That's what gods do. It's they're whole purpose in life." He said soothingly.

"_DO NOT PATRONIZE **ME**!"_ She yelled and then stomped out. Liam merely rolled his eyes and curled up close to the fire to sleep.

_A/N: Okay girlie's, you will **never **guess what I just thought of. Picture this, Orlando Bloom, outside you door, in a black tux, with a bouquet of red roses. Hehe, okay, maybe it isn't that great of a picture for you, but my friend and me just about died when we thought of that._

_Okay, to the point, hope you liked the chappie, though If you didn't please tell me why. And any hint's that would help my writing skills would be highly appreciated!_


	3. In Motion

Review Thank You's 

**Alcapacien**:  I'm glad you like the plot, I do to! 

**FlamingKnight**: You liked the e-mail, good. Yes, Alanna died. ::moment of silence:: Jon, not John. That would be the evil spellcheck! Charlamange is in there because the list looked sad with only Tortallan hero's in it. So I added other guys to make it look happy. 

**Lauren:** Yes, Ria is based on me. Josh says hi, I'm on the phone with him at the moment.

**ShnazzySpazzy:** Consider it updated.

**QueenofConnaught**: I'm sorry if you're mad at me because of my review. You asked for my opinion, and I gave it. You write very well, it's just that I think that you could come up with a much better plot is all.

**Alright, here is next chappie, I think it's dull, but cute. And I'll have you know that I went through and Formatted all of this so ALL the italics and crap would work, and then I uploaded it. And they showed up on the document, So I had to go back and un-do all the nice formatting, so, if anyone knows how to do it correctly could ya please explain it to me??******

**** **** **_Chapter 3: In Motion_**

           He awoke to her stomping in early in the morning. He opened one eye to watch her. Leaping to his feet he drew his only weapon, a tiny blade. She looked up at the slight sound he made.

"Hmm, almost soundless, that's good. You can put that wimpy thing away. It's not like it would do you any good in a fight." She said, rolling her eyes. She flipped long, dark red, almost black hair over her shoulder. He watched her for a few moments, not moving.

"Who are you?" He asked cautiously. She rolled her eyes again.

"Ria, Saturn, you spent all day with me yesterday." She said as she got out a few more pots and pans.

           "Really? Yesterday you had Short brown hair and brown eyes. Today you have long red hair, and _red _eyes. How do I know you're not a shade or a mage or a different person entirely?" He asked suspiciously. He jumped as she looked at the now desolate fire and it burst into flame again. 

           "I _am _a mage. And If I were a shade I would probably have killed you already. I just don't have all those ridiculous, not to mention _heavy_ glamour spells on. If we have to fix this idiot country I might as well look good doing it. Besides, I'll have more power this way." She watched him for a moment before continuing on with her work. 

           He sighed, "Alright. It's just weird, waking up and having you look completely different. Are you done screaming irrationally at the sky?" He asked, she glared. Dark red eyes boring into his, he felt she could see through him and through the wall behind him.

           "For now. Come on, pack up." She said quietly returning to her work. She was wearing a black skirt and a white blouse, with a wide red sash around her waist. She pulled on a black, hooded cloak and settled it around her shoulders. Then she looked at him. "That won't do. We can't recruit anyone if you look like a peasant. Take your spells off; they won't do you any good.

           "What? No! These keep me safe, if the city guards see me without them they'll arrest me on site!" He protested. She rolled her eyes.

           "That may be, but, you won't get anyone to work for if they don't know you're their prince. People are more likely to listen to you talk about a revolt then some measly peasant. Now take them off." She demanded before pulling saddlebags out of her pile of belongings. She looked over at him, now sitting on her lone chair, dark shaggy black hair falling into his eyes slightly, sapphire eye's glinting, all highlighting place skin. "Hmm," She murmured, more to herself than him. "How about, this." She said quietly. "_Unthgar, ilburan._ Hmm, that'll have to do. Here" She said, throwing him a dark hooded, cloak. "Put that on." She said, before turning to resume packing. 

           He took the cloak and settled it comfortably around his shoulders. He slipped out of the cave. Heading for a still, shallow pool he knew was only a few feet away from the pool. _Might as well see what she did to me. _He thought. He arrived at the pool just as the sun fully broke from the horizon, a bright orb promising a new day. _Unfortunately it sheds no heat._ He though bitterly. Fall was arriving at its zenith and winter was fast approaching. _And I'm going to be uprooted and moved around through its entirety. _He'd never led a rebellion, seldom had he wanted to. Once he had tried it as a young boy, trying to convince his sister Lianne that it would be best for both of them to rebel against their lessons. Lianne had not bought it.

           He looked into the pool and was pleasantly surprised. He looked almost like his old self. Grey pants, a clean cream shirt and the black cape. _Almost normal, but not quite._

           "Are your ready?"  She asked, and thought she had snuck up on him he did not jump. She had a calming presence.

           "To do what?" He asked.

           "To play the game."

           "Which one?" He asked carefully.

           "The one of survival."

::_::

           A week passed in a blur of time. Ria surprised Liam every few minutes, as Liam surprised Ria in turn. The two had very much underestimated each other. Liam had acquired them horses easily in the first village they came to. He had pulled a few favors and gotten them two very well bred horses. And they now found themselves in a drenching rainstorm. Both were cold to the bone and they were leading their horses through a virtual river of mud that had previously been called a road.

           "Ria," Liam called. He gasped as the cold cut like a knife into his mouth and down his throat into his lungs. "We can't keep going like this." He said as he caught up next to her. "The horses can't take it. I can't take it."

           "And just where, my liege, do you propose we stop?" she asked, a slight panic and crankiness deeply engrained into her voice. 

           "I don't know! I thought someone knew where we where going. He yelled. She glared at him, and winced, immediately chastised. Red eyes are very frightening when they're glaring 'die' at you. 

           "I did, but then this gods-all-cursed storm blew up and it's enough struggle to ensure we are not going in circles, your majesty." She yelled back.

           "Why do you do that?" He cried, utterly exasperated, the wet and cold having fried his temper.

           "Do what?" She screamed. 

           "My liege, your majesty. O Purple Mountain of glorious Kingliness." He said, naming all the things she had called him in the past few hours. She rolled her eyes.

           "Oh, I don't know maybe because you're the bloody prince." She said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. 

           "Yes but you're a princess and I don't go around calling you Mademoiselle, ladyship or pearl of the worlds eye do I?" he asked, and then smiled a bit as she broke out into riotous laughter.

           "Pearl of the worlds eyes?" She asked before the cold turned her laughter into coughing.

           "My brother told me that one." He said with a smile. "A love struck squire used to ay that of the Protector Of the Small." 

           "Really?" She said before smiling.

           Liam was extremely on edge. He was sitting in a tree watching Ria climb up a tall stone wall. _Why is_ **_she_** _climbing up the wall?_ He thought as he realized he could no longer feel his rear end. _Because she laughed hysterically when you offered to do it_. The sarcastic part of him said. _Oh yeah, why is it lately she does all the work and I sit back and watch when I'm the one who is supposed to be saving the world?_  He thought, _weird things you think in a tree. _He noted. 

_           And she's over the wall._ He heard nothing as she dropped off to the other side, he did see a small poof of white as she landed in a snow pile though. _And now, we wait._ He looked down at the horses who looked only mildly bored. "You guys don't look nearly as cold as I feel.

           Almost an hour later he watched as a small girl walked up to his tree.

           "What ya doin up there mister?" She asked innocently. She was wearing a ratty brown dress, and leather boots that were falling apart at the seams. She had soft copper hair that fell in ringlets around her shoulders and big blue eyes. He dropped down out of the tree.

           "Watching the birds. Where're you from little one?" He said, using the name Uncle George had called him. She smiled.

           "Th' fief. My daddy used to run it, but then he died and now Master Terim runs it." She said, swinging the small basket she carried. 

           "I'm sorry." He said, he noticed a fading ring of blue, black and purple around her eye. "How did this happen?" He asked, meeting her pale blue orbs. 

           "Oh, I dropped a hot pan on the floor, Mrs. Hatta, the cook, hit me with her spoon." She said, matter-of-fact. "Dropped it on my foot, wasn't to bad of a burn Mrs. Hatta said though, I thought it hurt like the Dickens." She said, eyes on her foot. "Doesn't hurt to bad anymore, th' eye hurts worse. But it's ok, cause, Mrs. Hatta said I weren't payin good nuf atten'ion." She said, smiling at him. 

           He was appalled. "How old are you?" He asked her. He had that feeling, the one that comes and settles in the pit of your stomach and makes you feel guilty building inside of him.

           "Seven sir." She said with a small smile. "But I don' know fer sure any more. We used to celebrate it, but nit since me parents died."

           "What fief did this used to be?" He asked, knowing he wouldn't like the answer.

           "Dunlath Sir." She said with a wide smile. "Used to be one of the greatest. Not anymore. Maybe when the Redeemer comes it can be again." She said, spinning in a circle. "Have ye' eard about him? He and his lady, they say she's going to be the oddest woman ever to grace the earth, they goin t' set us free they are." She smiled again, he was melting, that innocent little smile.

           "Redeemer?" He asked quizzically. "How do you know there's going to be a redeemer lass?" He asked patiently.

           "Our old priest, the one for Rhialden, said that he was coming, that he would set us free." She answered back. Liam felt the air whoosh out of him. 

           "Oh my." He said, digging into the saddle bags he pulled out one of Ria's skirts. He pulled it out and held it up against her. "Here take this, don't show that Mrs. Hatta, just ask one of the serving girls to hem it for you alright?" He said quickly.

           "Oh, thank ye' sir. I'll be sure not to show Mrs. Hatta." She said, taking the skirt and folding it into her basket.

           "Now be off with ye." He said. She smiled and nodded.

           "Goodbye sir." She called as she ran off towards the fief. Liam sighed and climbed back up into the tree.

           "Liam, Liam!" He looked down, and half slid half fell from his tree. "In the gods names, _how_ did you fall asleep in a tree?" She asked, she was all dusty, and she had a thin scratch on her cheek.

           "What took ya so long Ri?" He asked, yawning he grimaced as his jaw cracked. "Gods, you look, well, what happened to you?" He asked, only just catching himself before he made a fatal error. 

           "Ri? Since when am I Ri?She asked, he heard slight displeasure but also amusement in her tone.

           "Since I'm too lazy to add the other syllable." He said. "Did you get them?" 

           "Yes, we have official invitations to Midwinter." She said with a broad smile on her face. He grinned back, their plan was in motion.

** Soo, not a very intresting chappie, but I liked it, I think it was nessecary. Gave Liam a purpose, actually seeing what he's working ti do.  Anyways, review! Flames are always welcome, they a re used to heat my tower in the winter…Isn't it cool how I just cut it off there? Hehe…**

**Okay ladies, I wrote this while I was supposed to be writing my research paper. So be happy happy happy!  AND REVIEW.**

**Also, every one who left me an e-mail address in their review or I found one from their profile I e-mailed saying a new chapter was up. If Any one doesn't want to be on that list tell me so I know not to e-mail you. Happy Holidays!**

  



	4. The Past that Haunts Us

**Alcapacien: **Here go. More!!

**Fantasy Is My Life 1: **Death glare, yes yes yes…

**Serpent of Light: **Yes, My tower is fun. Although, there is this lava pit that surrounds it. It's where my muse locks me when he decides I should write.  J

**QueenofConnaught: **Yup, I live in America, thought I'd much rather live in England or Brittain.

**Flaming Knight: **You have mail…

**Fortune Cookie: **lol, I know, I have this little grammer 'unable to comprehend it' problem hehe

**Kiwi: **I do procrastination very well! 

**Chapter Four: The Past that Haunts Us**

She was running down the hall, her youngest child in her arms, the others running too, trying to keep up with their frantic mother, Shinkokami and Roald followed as well. They reached the storage rooms. She stuffed her children in closets, hoping to hide them from the murderers. She felt horrible, she had let them kill Jon, she had let her children watch. The only thing she could hope was that they would escape, and live, even if it was a life of fear. They would have survived.

She heard the men before she saw them, their swords and armor clanking up the stairs. She heard them pounding on the door. She turned and drew her knives. She would fight them. She would kill them. She grimaced as the door splintered apart. Scads of men entered the room.

"Queen Thayet." A voice said calmly as the others surrounded her. "You will be given an option. You can join me, and you and your children will die. Or you can refuse." He said, lowering his hood. He had venomous red eyes and silky black hair, and somehow, his perfect face reminded her of a cobra, ready to kill.

"I refuse." She said. The man smiled. 

"Bring me Lianne." He said calmly. His men ripped apart the cupboards, Pulling out Lianne. Roald and Shinko. **They missed Liam!** She realized immediately. They separated the. As quick as lightning Thayet threw a knife, it hummed as it flew. The man pulled Roald up in front of him as a shield. Thayet screamed as the knife buried itself up to it's hilt in his chest. He laughed, a melodic laugh that vibrated off the walls.

He looked a man in the eye, "If you would do the honors." He said. The man grinned and nodded. He pulled out a knife. **They're going to kill her. **Thayet thought furiously, trying to escape the men who held her.

The man did much worse. **My little girl.** Thayet screamed in fury as they did the same to Shinko.

"Now will you join me?" He asked.

"Never." She whispered. She had never dreamed something could hurt so much. As the blood flowed from her naked body she looked at the man. "May you burn in the Black gods realm for all eternity." The man simply grinned and ran her through.

            Liam awoke, screaming. Ria was next to him, shaking his shoulder. "Liam!" She yelled in frustration. He sat up, colliding with her forehead, he didn't even notice, the sweat ran off his body in waves. He heard Ria mutter something about 'waking the whole inn up.' He was gasping for air his lungs couldn't inhale. His limbs were shaking. Ria watched carefully.

            "Sorry." He apologized.

            "Care to share what that was about?" She asked. He shook his head. They looked out the window at the pre-dawn light.

            "Lets just ride." He said simply. She nodded.

            Hours Later Ria finally broke the silence. "We need more people." She said. He nodded.

            "I know, I just don't know how to find them. We'd need people our age, people who still remembered the way it was before…" He trailed off.

            "I know a guy in Cour- Haimèt, who can refer some people." She said carefully, not wanting to upset him.

            "Then we'll speak to him first. He's a thief now correct?" 

            "Yes."

            "Good, cause if we're to attend midwinter we need more money." He said, with a wicked smile. "But of course, I could do that part to." Ria started in amazement.

            "You pickpockets?" She asked incredulously, mouth agape in shock. Liam just smirked.

            "Yes, I also, lie, cheat, count cards, and," he said in a whisper. "I sleep with the flower girls." He said, winked, and trotted ahead. Ria wasn't sure what to think. 

~

            She was falling fast, the universe spinning around her, she was lost. They were throwing her out, why she didn't know. She didn't understand. They weren't allowing her to stay. Something about an affair. Illigitimacy. They where trying to explain things with words she couldn't understand. Raya, the dragon glared at her as they marched her past. They forced her into a circle of candles.

            "Saturn, you have been exiled. Never come back." He said. She had never seen this man before. Never come back? Where am I going? She thought wildly. "We will send you to Tortall." He said, Tortall? Wasn't that the country that had just been taken over? Why where they sending her there. Where was her father? Her mother was there. Staring coldly at the little girl surrounded by flames. Why is she angry with me? Saturn thought. The flames flashed white once and the world blurred.

            She saw oceans and ships and people as she floated in a continuum of time. She dropped to the floor gasping. Then she realized she was on the top of a mountain.

            She bolted awake, gasping for air. Liam wasn't the only one who suffered from nightmares. 

I originally had another part after this,  I'm not sure if I like the next part so I'm gonna think about it and re-write it and I shud be up in the next couple a days. And I get to see The Return of the King tonight! YES! More Orlando Bloom!!

**_Any who. I'm gonna stop babbleing now. Orlando…_**

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**_Kind of a weird name don't you think, Orlando Bloom? Hehehe, random. I'm OUT OF SCHOOL! Two weeks of no French class! YES! I hate French class, it is the bane of my existence. _**

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**_Also, a question, do u guys want a little romance here? Or no? Cause I can write it either way. Also, I want to add a Pippin (from LotR) like character to this for comic relief what do you think?_**

**_~Ana_**


	5. Gemma

Hi guys!! ** waves excitedly** It's Chirstmas!! Or hanaku (sp?) or, kwanzzaa (sp?) I celebrate Christmas, but anywho. New chappie! YAY for new Chappie!!! I'm Hyper, can ya tell?? No? Bummer!! Hehe, I just won a game of risk against me family. I won by a lot! Heheh YAY for the risk queen! Kiwi36: lol, did u like RotK? I did cept for the ending, because they changed the ending, but u can read my rant about that later… Yes, Orlando bloom, gods gift to women… 

**Fantasy Is My Life 1: **yes, I was planning on killing every one off. I started the whole 'kill everybody' thing cause ppl were confused, but I think they all get it now…

**Chinow: ****bows** Yay for believable plot line!!! Yay for choccy! Cool word by the way.. Pocky?? Lemmie guess, one of those blessed thing you cannot find in America unless you import it off the internet? YAY for giant fireballs of doom jumping off things!!! Lol, and I must admit, Viggo puts up a good fight and in LotR Orlando does win thought, there is a scene in RotK that causes Orlando to win. But Orlando looses in PotC because in that Johnny Depp wins soooo… And Legolas is so NOT a wimpy elf man! *-*

**The Goddess of Purple Coats: **purple coats eh? Why??? ^-^

**Flaming Knight: **lol, kkk, as u can see, I uploaded another chappie with out u… I'm very impulsive about this whole uploading thing. I get done, and I upload, sooo…

**Serpent of Light: **The bridge is good, no worries. And you cannot complain about living in Hawaii, I live in Minnesota, it's friggin cold here, I would be more than pleased to switch any time of the year, well, maybe not summer, then it'd be too friggin Warm but still! Thought I must agree that sunny weather all the time is unnatural.

**Galux Pheonix: **lol, that's my thought, every good story has a little romance in it!

**Nip: **you, are my new best friend. Bad cooking, that, is _absolutely_ brilliant! I love you!!!! And yes, I did kind of forget about the whole, sustenance needed thing. ^_~ I only ever do a little romance, I couldn't write a whole romance story I would die of fluff overload. YAY for Pirates of the Caribbean, which, personally I thought was brilliant. Pirates ya know?!?! Ok, I have a Pirate fettish, yes I admit, I have a problem, **goes off to Pirate support group**… 

Chapter Five: Gemma 

**Daine gasped as the air was forced from her lungs once again. She glared into the eyes of her abuser. He had killed Numair, killed cloud, killed everyone, thinking that he would force her to join him. Ha! She knew what he'd done to the rest of the women here to try and gain their help. She wouldn't help him either, but she was smarter than them, the only way he would have her was if she were dead. The man twirled his sword idily.**

**"Now, will you join me?" he asked, in that melodic voice of his. Slowly Daine grinned .She stood shakily to her feet. She walked towards him, step by step. The man watched curiously as she walked towards him with a smile. Standing before him she winked before grabbing his sword and running I through her stomach. He face showed no pain, only blissful release.**

**Numair felt her die, rooms away. This really is the end. He thought bitterly. He reached for the last remains of his gift, infuriated that his wife and unborn child were dead. The spells that bound his magic collapsed as fury fed his gift. Using all of his strength he exploded the wing of the palace he was is, blowing himself, the guards at the door and anything within fifty feet to dust.**

The rode into down in a downpour. Ria signaled to him and rode to the left. Liam followed. She stopped her horse in front of a ratty old building that looked as if it would fall down at any moment. Ria dismounted and waited for him at the door. Together they entered the building. It was empty, the floorboards creaked as they walked across an there were numerous cobwebs on the walls. Liam came to stand next to Saturn. She was silent, he looked at her face wondering what she was thinking when the floor above them creaked.

"Well, what _do _we have here?" A voice asked from above. Saturn looked up.

"I'm looking for William." She said, meeting the body in the shadows with an equally steely glare.

"Dead, as of to months ago. Now, out, or we will have to hurt you." The voice said and suddenly the rest ot the shadows moved to surround them. Liam looked at Saturn.

"Lets go-" He started to say before deciding that just moving her would work faster. They were walking backwards towards the door when daggers started to fly around them. He slammed the door behind him.

"Well," Staurn gasped. "That worked well."

"Understatement of the year Princess." He said with a smirk.

"Lets just got to the Dove hot-shot."

§

            The entered into chaos. "What in the name of the gods…" Ria began before seeing Gemma, the rouge's princess. Both had the suspicion that she too was of the old nobility, but weren't about to mention it to a girl who was able to kill them in a moment. At the moment Gemma was glaring at a group of men in a brawl, from her chair on a table she could watch the whole thing with out being in any imminent danger. A boy leapt to the table and whispered something in her ear; Gemma rolled her expressive blue eyes and nodded.

            "Now, _really_ boys. Is this any way to act in front of a Princess? I think not. And I'm _positive _Lexus won't appreciate knowing you tore his Inn apart. Away with you, be gone. I've had enough of your brawling tonight." She said, draping her legs over the armrest. The men stopped their fighting and with a glare from Gemma quickly left. "All of you, I've tired of you." She said, closing her eyes and putting a hand to her forehead as if she was getting a headache.

            "Bit of an ego this one huh?" Liam asked sarcastically. Ria smirked.

            "Oh it's only a small bit." She said. As the door slammed shut Gemma leapt from her chair and grabbed onto one of the rafters. Swinging her self up onto it she walked across until she stopped above Liam and Ria. 

            "No I do not have an ego. Who might you be?" She asked, sounding bored. 

            "Well uh-" Ria started, completely lost for the first time in her life.

            "Well, Gemma, I here am Liam, and this is Ria." He said. Ria looked as if she wanted to throttle him.

            "Liam. Huh?" She grinned as she dropped down. "I've heard a little rumor Liam. Perhaps you could help me out with it. Because I've been hearing that the late Prince Liam, is not dead. And that he and a Draconian princess are going to attempt to, hm, how to say this delicately. Oh, _I _know, attempt to overthrow the new government. You wouldn't _happen_ to be the same Liam would you?" She said, her voice dripping with caustic curiosity.

            "I may be, but the question is, why do you want to know?" He asked with a smile. Gemma smiled as well.

            "Oh the whole kill the evil mage guy who's in charge of Tortall and all the surrounding evil noble guys just sounds endlessly amusing to me." She said.

            "So does that mean that if I _was_ that same Liam you would like to help?" he said with a wink, she smirked.

            "But of course." She said, winking back.

            "Well then, Lady Gemma, I'm Prince Liam of Conte, and this is my lovely accomplice, Lady Saturn." He said, with a smile that only a prince could pull off.

            Saturn was infuriated.

§

            "You can't _do_ that! " Saturn said in a forced whisper, inches from his face. 

            "Do what, my dear?" He said, slightly amused at her out burst.

            "Tell random people who we are!" She yelled.

            "But you see, I can. And will continue to do so."

            "What?!"

            "This isn't your quest. It's mine. And do you know what I've realized? You've been doing all the work when this is my thing to do. We need help. We cannot kill over one hundred people and rebuild a working government by ourselves. We need more people. We have to come up with an army, a base, and a working inner circle. We need to know people who know people. We need to acquire information, and be able to use that information. And plainly, my dear, we can't do it with only the two of us. Gemma can help us, you don't end up in charge of the rouge easily." He said. Looking her straight in the eyes.

            "She doesn't command the rouge. She's only a princess." Saturn said stubbornly.

            "She does. She didn't like the title queen, said it made her feel old." He said before leaving.

§

            "You're sure this will work?" He asked doubtfully. Gemma rolled her eyes.

            "Yes. You aren't to actually do anything, just introduce yourself so he knows you still exist." Gemma repeated. Liam nodded. 

            "Wouldn't it be safer just to keep quiet about this whole thing until we're ready to fight him?" Saturn asked.

            "No."

            "Why?"

            "Because, if he thinks you don't exist he won't be looking for you." She said plainly.

            "We don't want him looking for us."

"Yes, you do."

            "Why?"

            "So he wastes his resources." She said with a smirk.

            "I don't understand." Saturn said, highly confused.

            "If he knows you're here, he'll look for you. But he _won't _expect you to stay in the city. The closer you are to danger, the farther you are from harm. He'll look for you outside the city. And I'll put together a little line of rebellions so he thinks you're in the south. Not in the city. Get it?"

            "I think so." Saturn said doubtfully

            "Good, now we have to get you two proper clothing." The thief said. Running up the stairs to the attic. The two followed her. Not expecting the sight that was the attic. They had never been up there; there really wasn't any reason to go. The room was full of clothing racks. "Just find something you think will work. I've got to put my team together if we're to pull this off." She said, sliding out a window to climb down an ivy-covered trellis.

            "Quite the odd duck that one." Liam commented. Saturn didn't respond. "Are you still mad?" He asked plainly, relations with Saturn the past few days had been, strained to say the least. Finally she smiled, Liam sighed, and things were back to normal. For the moment. 

§

            Liam waiting as Saturn tried on a dress behind a partition when Gemma marched two people up the stairs. Both were males, one with brown hair, the other reddish, the hats they wore obscured their faces. "Alec Swiftfinger, and Jack Ladyfoot." Gemma introduced. Liam heard a snort behind the partition and a muttered 'L_adyfoot?'._

            "I see. They're trustworthy?" He asked. Gemma nodded. 

            "Oh yeah. And if they're not, well castration with a spoon always solved that problem, doesn't it boys?" She asked, throwing her arms around their shoulders.

            "Right Gemma, right…" Ladyfoot mumbled as he took of his hat.

            "And we all know how well Gem here wields her almighty spoon of castration…" Alec said with a smirk.

            "C'mon now boys we have a plan to critique." Gemma said as she bounded down the stairs. 

**_Hahaha! I saw RotK! Gandalf so funny, he swings the almighty stick of Gandalf and people die! Mwhahaha! And they screwed the ending! (If you haven't seen it stop reading and skip to next paragraph) Frodo SO does not get on the boat and go to elf-land! Ahh! Evil evil evil stupid directors who change perfectly good endings! GAH!!_**

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**_Okay, done now. Whoo. And why did you all assume when I said romance it was in reference to Saturn and Liam? So not. Anywho. Review!_**


	6. Midwinter Ball

Alcapacien: Yes but here's the thing, If Strider's little elf girlfriend was supposed to leave on the 'last boat' to the gray havens, unless that boat stayed, there wasn't another boat for all those people to get on after the war, it doesn't make any logical sense. 

**FlamingKnight: **It's okey, I think I can manage, maybe..

**Serpent of Light: **Ohh, I feel _soo _bad, you live on an island, where it's sunny! God, I line in Minnesota where there are iceberg in the river in the summer! I do say I understand about the cabin fever thing, because where I live if you go outside nine months out of the year you freeze soo.. Do ya know where ya get to go next? Maybe it'll be snowing… hehee, Ranting is FUN!

**Tisa: **hi, I read the book u gave me. It was funny, I giggled. 

**Nip: **Too much plot? Rapid? Maybe, I guess mow that I look back at it. Lol, I just thought it was the next step but I can see how a chappi in the middle there would have been good, ;). Gemma character building comes up in this chappie, which if you think about it is only a few more pages, so it _was _coming just not when you wanted it to. Court gown descriptions coming too, maybe I should have just combined the to chapters, thought that would have been a _lot_ of plot in one chappie. Lessa book? ::is completely lost:: An I am waiting for my beta who seems to have randomly died, both of my betas seem to have randomly died. Wow, I must be a beta killer…And long reviews are best!

**Too_Lazy_For_A_Name: **See my reasoning for frodo in above review…No more use of the word ego, got it. Didn't even think about it, lol, that's sad…no more use of the word ratty… okey, gots it! J

**Lady Emmi: **::giggles:: yes but, logically, he couldn't have gone because If striders elfin girlfriend was supposed to have gone on the last boat, it was the **last** boat and they wouldn't have made such a big deal about her going if they could make more boats correct? So therefore there couldn't be _another_ boat, and therefore Frodo couldn't have gotten on any boat to elfland because there aren't any more boats! Get it? 

Chapter Six: The Midwinter Ball 

**_"You know, women don't belong in combat Keladry." The man said, looking at the girl he had in a cage. She did not look happy. "Now, I'll let you go, if you give up this ridiculous thought you have of fighting and join with my other women._**

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**_"You mean pets." She said caustically._**

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**_"Temper, temper. But the offer still stands."_**

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**_"I'd rather burn." She spat._**

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**_"The you shall. Burn her." He said._**

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**_That night, for the fist time in a decade the second highest tower on the castle was aglow, aglow with the eerie, disgusting light that is given only when a human is burned._**

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**_Not once did she scream or cry out. She just burned._**

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He was feeling completely useless, Gemma had gone somewhere, and he didn't know where, not that he thought that he wanted to. Saturn and he where sitting in front of the fire drinking tea of all things when there was a war to fight, and then suddenly he couldn't take it anymore, he just laughed. Saturn gave him a funny look before she too started laughing. Gemma had walked in the door and was watching them, completely amused though stress was evident on her face. _So, that's what happens when nobles get really stressed._ She thought to herself and waited the few minutes it took them to settle down. She felt terrible; she knew she was sending them to do something she herself would never be able to accomplish. 

            "Alright, now that that's out of your system." She said, quietly as she walked towards them. "Here are your clothes for the ball later tonight, I had them cleaned, Alec and Jack should be here any moment." She said, as if on cue the two walked down the hall, both dressed up, hair combed neatly, though Saturn hid a grin when Alec ran his fingers through his dirty red colored hair. She hadn't ever noticed that his eyes where a blue you could drown in, _what?_ Her mind screamed as she thought that. _You are not supposed to be interested in your own conspirators. _She told herself sternly. Jack looked overly bored. 

            "Explain again why _I _have to wear this?" he asked, "I ain't goin into any palace." He said plainly, Gemma rolled her eyes and ignored him

            "Alec, you need to go, Ladyfoot, sit your arse down over there, Liam get dressed, Saturn, come on, we have to make you look like a proper lady in, ahh!-less than an hour." She said, grabbing the dress and dragging her up the stairs. 

"Ow!" He heard Saturn yell, and then he heard a stream of expletives that would wilt flowers and make the burliest guardsman grin. Liam looked nervously at the door. They were supposed to be at the Castle in half an hour and he had yet to see Saturn, only hear her.

            "Do ye think mayhap they're killin' each other?" Ladyfoot asked, glancing at Liam, all who frequented the Dove had noticed the silent tension between the two girls.

            "Dunno." Liam said frankly, "But I'm not goin' to march in there to see."

            "That'd mean a fate worse than death." The other man agreed. 

Liam sighed, this question had been bugging him for days. "Do ye know, hoe, Gemma became queen?" He asked. Ladyfoot grinned.

"Yea, she cut off the old kings," He gestured to his pants. "And that was the end of that. No thief can be respected it he ain't got nothing." Liam grimaced, that wasn't what he had wanted to know.

"I meant before, who was she growing up? Who where her parents? Where was she from?" He asked, looking at the stairs.

"That laddie, is a question you need to ask Gemma." He said sternly, signaling that the conversation was over. So they sat, waiting for the door to open. Five minutes later it did. Revealing a smug Gemma and a gasping Saturn.

            "I am _never _wearing a dress again." She said, glaring at Liam, who was stunned. She was in a black and red dress with a miniscule waist. The bodice was a deep red fabric covered with a black lace and the same dark red made the sleeves that hung far past her hands. The skirt flared out far from her feet the same red as her bodice, and covered in the same black lace. Her hair had bee piled high on the top of her head and curled to fall gracefully around herself. He eyes were lined in black and her lips painted a deep red. Her face had been powdered to milky whiteness. Ladyfoot reached over and pushed Liam's jaw back into place.

            "Um, Saturn." He began haltingly. "You look…" He started again, but then lost his words. Ladyfoot stepped in to save him.

            "Absolutely stunning darling. Really, truly amazing. Like the goddess Saturn herself come to pay us lowly mortals a call." He said with a broad grin. Saturn frowned then smiled widely.

            "Thank you, it seems that you, unlike some men around here are actually smart enough to for complete sentences." She said with a wicked smile before gasping again. "It really has to be this tight?" She asked Gemma who nodded. 

            "I don't know if you've ever seen courtiers but they have about four inch waists." She said, Saturn nodded, though you could tell she knew sarcasm when she heard it, they had fourteen-inch waists. 

            "Lets go get this over with then."  She said, walking stiffly to the door, hand on her stomach. _I'll get used to it. _She repeated to herself, practicing rapid, albeit shallow breathes as she walked out the door to the waiting carriage. Gemma, Liam and Ladyfoot joined her a few moments later; Swiftfinger was already in place at the palace. Saturn hardly said anything as they were carried across the bumpy roads of the city. When the bumps stopped and they felt the road incline steeply Gemma and Swiftfinger climbed into the crawl spaces under the seats to hide until after Saturn and Liam had left the carriage. 

            The plan was that Saturn and Liam would go to the palace as courtiers. Swiftfinger was to impersonate a squire, what he was actually doing was gathering information about the court, blackmail really. He'd been up there for a week and he had already successfully gathered rather, embarrassing information about the kings, 'mage' and other high-ranking nobles. He was successfully baiting many noble wives and daughters, in various disguises. Swiftfginger was much more than a common thief; he was a master of disguise, a different type of thief. 

            Saturn and Liam were only to make an appearance, let the king and his advisor know that they were alive and kicking. It would enrage the man just to know Liam was alive, but he couldn't very well attack them in the middle of his own Kings banquet now could he? That was Gemmas reasoning anyway, Liam and Saturn had decided that that plan of action would not certainly not work and had placed knives on their body wherever they would go. Saturn's legs were almost completely covered in knives. As was Liam's back. 

            Gemma and Ladyfoot were going to break into the Advisors chamber and locate the private room, Gemma insisted he would have a private room, and then collect information as to what he was up to, what spells he was using, people on his 'hit list', people he was using, spies and other such useful information. Gemma was also going to try and convince one of the king's women to pass information she picked up to them. 

            Gemma was in anguish, she felt like she was feeding them to the lions without them knowing it. They seemed to think this would be easy, which it could very well be, but she knew it would probably not be. And Saturn worried her, Gemma knew a little more about Draconians than Liam, and she knew they didn't leave their precious island unless they absolutely had to, which was never, or if they where banished. When a Draconian was banished a mark was burnt into their skin to mark them as a traitor, the mark of a certain planet, and Saturn had the mark of the Planet Saturn. Gemma did not believe the nonsense of planets, she could see the moon so she believed it was there. But other planets? That was nonsense. Supposedly the Dragons had seen these planets, flown to them. Gemma didn't believe a word of it. 

            To say the least Liam was nervous, his hands were sweating like no other and he felt nauseous. Not at all like a prince going to a ball in his own palace should feel. IT was odd really, he was returning 'home', and yet he felt disgusted that he was even considering entering that place again, the place where his father and brothers killed, his mother and sisters raped. The place from which joy and happiness had once pulsated and not it only radiated fear and destruction. 

            The carriage stopped and Liam got out and then helped Saturn out like a proper Gentleman would, not even really thinking about it. He was focused on his home, the ruins of Balor's needle still where piled around the part of the needle that still stood, the parts of the castle walls that had fallen had been replaced by black stone, giving the palace a motley look. He offered Saturn his arm and began climbing the overly familiar stairs to the door. The doors opened and a stuffy servant showed them to the grand hall. 

            They waited in line for a few minutes and when the Herald asked for their names Liam told him Liam and Saturn, ambassadors from the House of Givernia. Supposedly Gemma had 'detained' the real ambassadors and they wouldn't be attending. The herald nodded and announced them. A few people turned to look at them and then turned back to what they where doing, but one man in the corner, dressed in dark robes watched them carefully, almost afraid. The King hadn't even given a thought to it, and when they came and gave him their regards he laughed drunkenly. 

            The pair had danced and eaten and when, hours later, Gemma came in dressed as a serving girl and told them to give the mage, Dovinair-she had found out his name, their regards and thanks for a lovely party the two where elated. They glided over to him, smiling and laughing like they where having a lovely time the man winced.

            "Good, sir, we where going to tell your king but decided not to interrupt him. We've had a lovely time, Sir Dovinair, Saturn and I. And we hope, that in due time, we shall meet again." He said a little drunk from all of the wine it would seem. Saturn smiled politely and the two disappeared into the crowd, just in time for a loud roar to be heard above the crowd. 

            Then they ran for it, Saturn hiked up her skirts, in a much unladylike fashion and Liam maintained a harsh grip on her elbow. A blast of black magic exploded a few feet to their left and Liam spun around and created a wall of blue fire, Saturn turned to help him but he shook his head, "Go!" He yelled and turned to face the advancing mage.

            "No, I can-" She started.

            "_GO NOW!"_ he yelled in a tone of voice Saturn was sure she never wanted to hear again. She turned and ran, shame evident on her face, she was running away. She knew that was what it was, and she ignored the turning in her stomach. She wasn't running away, she was going for help. She told herself that as she ran across Corus, all the way back to the inn. She burst through the door, just as Gemma was giving a toast to their success.

            "Saturn, come in, we where just about to-" She began.

            "No time, Liam, and the mage…" She said, breathing hard. Gemma's face turned to stone when she realized what Saturn was trying to say.

            "You left him fighting Dovinair by himself?" She whispered, Saturn nodded, her face wet by the tears she had shed. Gemma bolted out of the inn, muttering something about stupid, noble born girls without  brains. She followed Gemma out the door only to see a horse disappear into the darkness. Saturn's head swam for a full minute before she hit the ground, the familiar darkness enveloping her body.

            Alec watched in something quite like awe and Saturn entered the room, enchanting in her disheveled state. The he had watched with growing concern as Gemma's 'mad face' became more evident. The he watched her blaze out of the room, Saturn with a look on her face that was shockingly close to fear. She looked at the people in the room. "Start packing, I have a feeling we'll be leaving."

§

            As Gemma rode towards the palace she felt the magical struggle going on inside the building. The static charge in the air tried to push her away but she pressed on, she remembered the feeling from her childhood, her father's experiments had always created this pressure that pulsated through the house and had driven her mother to madness. The pressure that had invaded her body and turned her into a sniveling whelp, the pressure that had driven her from her home.

She had made a point of avoiding her father and the country they had lived in at all costs, until her father had, once again invaded her life.

 She jumped off the horse and ran through the palace, following the magical signal of the two mages. She ran down the stairs of the great hall, Liam was holding his own keeping the mage away from him but he had no means of escape. She ran towards him, putting up her own wall. She heard Dovinair's aggravated shriek as she pulled Liam from the battle, weak and shaky in her arms. They stumbled for the door. 

"Gemmamina." Came the voice of her father cutting through the magical pressure that was slowly dissipating. She turned and glared.

"Dovinair." She said, hatred dripping from her voice.

"Now, is that any way to treat your father?" He asked, almost sternly, like a father reprimanding his child.

"You, are no father of mine." She said, pulling Liam further away from her father.

He laughed, his evil laugh that radiated ill will. "Whether you like it or not we are flash and blood and you _will _have to deal with that Gemmamina. Take the idiot boy, he's not worthy of my attention, even if the only reason I was even looking at him was to kill him." He said before turning to walk away.

Gemma, looked at Liam, trying to find words to explain. He shook his head, "Later, right now we have to get far away from here. She nodded and they ran for the Dove. Everyone was waiting for them. "We have to leave." Liam said as they cam through the door. "_Now._" 

**_Well, That came out a little different than I thought…I hope this chapter explains some questions left over from the last, I know some of you thought it was a little fast, I know this chapter goes fast as well, next chappie things slow down for, a little while anyway. And I went over this chappie for spelling grammar things, I'm just not sure it if helped. _**

**_Well, YAY for funny little, unplanned plot twists! Oh, and can anyone explain the term 'plot bunnies' to me??_**

****

**_~Ana_**__


	7. Sordid News

**Fortune Cookie: **I'll add that to the number of Post-It notes around my computer.

**Alcapacien: **Yes Kel was burnt at the stake…hehehe, inspired by my Joan of Arc fettish…

**Nip: **The thief guy problem is being taken care of, no problem…The rest is being taken care of, really, all will be taken care of in time…

**FlamingKnight: **Yes I still want ya to beta, tell me when you've finished the two chappies you have and I'll send you a new one.

**Youdontneedtoknow: **Glad you read it too! Ahh, plot bunnies…I see….funfunfun

**Lady Emmi: **yeah…LoTR..fun stuff…I'm still confused…

**Serpent of Light: **YAY for original villany names!

Chapter Seven: Sordid News 

            Liam was terrified, really, truly terrified, they were being followed. Ten miles from Port Caynn and they were being tailed. The horses were almost done in, white foam flew from their mouths as they raced forwards. He turned to look being him, at least a half dozen riders were following them. He caught Saturn's eyes, _keep going_, he said before pulling the reins hard to the left. _It's me they want._ He realized as the six men followed him. 

            He glanced behind and grinned. _Lets see if they can keep up. _He urged his horse through tiny gaps in between trees, using them for shields against the arrows that rained down upon him. He heard a resounding thud and a terrified whinny of a horse but did not look back, he was being hunted but he would not be killed. Violence had always scared Liam, not because of the brutality of it but because of the things it ignited inside of him. He became consumed by it. His brain only thought of one thing, kill or destroy. He had learned that one fateful morning in the practice ring with the other noble boys, they had been set to sparring and Liam had ended up almost killing the boy, then he had been sent to the city of the gods, no fighting there, just quiet, old, peaceful books and people who hardly made noise.

            Another crash from behind him, Liam quickly put up a thin magic wall in between a few trees, just strong enough to knock them from their horses. Two more thuds, leaving him three men. He turned his horse in a clearing and drew his sword…

            Saturn was yelling for them to go, but Alec shook his head and went after Liam, six on one was not possible, even for a mage. He guided his horse with his knees and held the reigns in his hand. He quickly loaded his bow and held it taught, catching up to the men. He shot one and barely avoided colliding with a fallen horse and rider. He had been busy watching Liam and hadn't realized that he was suddenly one attacker short. A glittering sword came out in front of him and imbedded itself in his skull.

            Liam opened his hand and let loose the black fire that lived within him. It spread in a large, unstoppable mass, curling itself around the nearest horseman, suffocating him. The second looked furious and charged him screaming something about vengeance, which really made no sense because it was he who had attacked Liam. Liam defended himself expertly, his mind loosening it's once firm hold on his body and he drifted into a mindless state of block, lunge, cut, kill. At one point his mind noticed that the man was retreating but his body wouldn't let him get away and he attacked. 

            Saturn was pacing the ships length, occasionally she would glance to the street, hoping for some sign of Liam's approach, but none came. Gemma was reclining in a chair smoking. Tobacco was a relatively new thing, the Empire had brought it with them and it had become relatively calm. Saturn had never tried it but breathing the smoke made something inside her crave it. She was appalled at herself but wanted to snatch it out of Gemma's hand nonetheless. Ladyfoot had fallen asleep, his drink in his hand. It smelled like Ale but Saturn wasn't an expert on the subject. 

            Liam gasped, his chest ached, like someone had bound him in one of the ladies corsets.  His head throbbed and it seemed his horse had abandoned him. He sat up and slowly heaved himself upright. Then he looked down, his clothed where covered in blood and dirt. _I look like the living dead._ He thought as he walked towards town praying no one would see him in the city, the rumors would spread like wildfire if they thought he was a phantom. 

            Saturn glanced to the street once again, the horizon was turning into a light pink and the darkness was slowly receding and a figure was approaching them. She gasped as he drew nearer. His porcelain skin was marked by blood, his clothes soaked with it. Gemma looked up and swore. "He looks like the Phantom of Death." She murmured and Saturn glared. The Phantom only existed in tales, a merciless killer who came only at the darkest hour before dawn. 

            He stumbled onto the ship and Saturn grabbed him and dragged him below decks, "Set sail." She called to Gemma who was already waking Ladyfoot, the sordid news would wait till later.

He was dreaming, in an unconscious state of mind the brain retrieves all memories and they float in a state of continual unaware awareness. Complicated I know…

_Numair was pacing in his study, slightly annoyed by Liam's incessant questions.   
He was saying that Draconians were born with a marking, like the humans birth marks, only these were representative of a persons nobility and name and fate. Draconians live a socialistic society where everything was predetermined at birth. Nothing could be changed after that, unless of course you were banished from the isle, at which point a blade was drawn through the birthmark, cutting it in two and severing the magical tie to the island. Unless this happened you could not leave the island, it was impossible, after the tie with the island had been cut you couldn't stand to be on the island, the touch of the isle would burn._

            Liam sat up out in his cot and looked into the red eyes of Saturn who had been sitting, unmoving, "What did you do?" He asked and she looked surprised.

            "What do you mean?" She asked, eyes wide.

            "To be banished from your home, what did you do?"

**_A/N: _**_So so so so so so so so so sorry this took so long. My computer crashed and then it took a while to fix it and then I had writers block and couldn't remember where I had been going with this but I finally got something up. _

_IF you have time PLEASE take a look t my new HP fic: Serendipity , other than that, happy springtime!_


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